Numerous woodland communities reside amongst the grasslands of Manassas National Park. This provides a diverse range of habitats that supports a variety of wildlife. Some of the most prominent trees that persist in the park include White Ash, White Oak, Mockernut Hickory, Eastern Red Cedar, Black Cherry, Northern Red Oak, and Black Oak. Different environmental factors determine what type of forest dominates an area. Some of these determining factors include elevation, hydrology, soil type, and nutrients. Acorns and hickory nuts are a tasty, high-energy meal for many woodland animals. Small mammals, deer, and birds can often be seen foraging nuts from the forest floor. Animals play an important role as 'gardeners' by stashing nuts in the soil and forgetting about them, allowing the seeds to germinate under the protective layer of soil. Shrubs thrive in the understory of forests, providing food and cover for many animals in the park. Flowering Dogwood, Black Haw, Wild Licorice, and Deerberry are shrubs that can be found along the forest floor. Japanese Honeysuckle, Barberry, and Multiflora Rose are shrubs that exist throughout the park as invasive plant species. These invasive plants were introduced by man and outcompete other native plants for space and nutrients.
Manassas National Battlefield Park
NPS Photo
Common Tree Species at Manassas
These trees are found in semi-dry to dry upland forests and woodlands. They can be found in wetter areas but are less common.
This tree is distinctive because of its light-grey bark that appears flakier as the tree ascends.
Mature trees can reach 80 to 100 feet in height and 600-year-old individuals have been recorded.
Leaves are smooth and typically have deeply cut sinuses (spaces between leaf lobes). The ends of lobes are typically rounded, lacking a sharp point like other oaks.
Acorns are ellipsoid and the ‘top hat’ cups have warty or knobby scales. Over 180 species are known to use acorns as food.
White oak is known for being a slow-growing tree.
Its high-grade wood is used in cabinetry, boatbuilding, and barrel building.
These trees are found in semi-dry to dry upland forests and woodlands and occasionally in well-drained floodplain forests.
Leaves are pointed at the ends of lobes, giving them a spiky appearance. Hairs are present on the leaf veins.
Bark starts smooth when trees are young and become lighter colored, flat ridges as the tree matures.
Mature trees are typically 65 to 98 feet tall. These trees are known to be fast-growing and easily transplanted.
As many as 500 or more acorns may be required to produce one 1-year-old seedling, and acorn production can vary year-to-year. Seeds are mainly dispersed by gravity and squirrels and mice acorn caching.
Northern Red Oak is commonly used in landscaping because of it’s beautiful fall foliage and symmetry. It is the only native oak extending northeast to Nova Scotia.
This tree is found in dry to semi-dry upland forests and woodlands.
Leaves have 7-9 pointed lobes and are a glossy green color in the summer.
Bark is very dark and scaly, with areas of bark appearing flattened and flaky.
Mature trees range from 60 to 80 ft tall. Individuals can live to be 150-200 years old.
The wood is used for furniture and flooring and is sold as red oak. It is not typically used for landscaping.
Trees start producing acorns around 20 years old with optimum acorn production from 40-75 years. Acorns are spread short- and long-distance by birds and squirrels. They serve as an important food source for squirrels, white-tailed deer, mice, voles, turkeys, and other birds.
The second half of the scientific name, velutina, is derived from the Latin word for fleece, wool, or down. It references the velvety look and texture of winter buds and young foliage.
These trees are found in rocky woodlands, barrens, and outcrops, seepage swamps, well-drained floodplain forests, and old fields.
Leaves have a compound-leaf growth structure, typically separated into 7-10 leaflets per stem.
Leaflets are oval shaped with ridged edges. A prominent point is present at the tips of leaflets.
Bark is grey and has fine ridges.
White ash saplings are shade tolerant and can exist in the understory for longer periods of time and grow rapidly when exposed to light. As the tree ages, it becomes less shade-tolerant and needs increasing amounts of light to survive.
Seeds are dispersed by wind and the minimum seed-bearing age is 20 years.
This tree is found in a wide range of semi-dry to dry upland forests.
Bark is grey and tight to the tree- it is never shaggy.
Trees are considered slow-growing and reach 65 to 98 feet at maturity.
Wood has been used for broom handles, skis, wagon wheels, sporting goods, and tool handles.
Leaves have a compound-leaf growth structure and are divided into 3-7 oval-shaped leaflets that come to points at the tips.
Nuts are thick shelled, rounded, and usually have a distinct stipe on the bottom. Fox squirrels, grey squirrels, eastern chipmunks, black bears, grey foxes, raccoons, red squirrels, pocket mice, woodrats, and rabbits all rely on the nuts for sustenance. They are also eaten by many bigger birds.
The seeds are dispersed by small mammals and birds and minimum seed-bearing age is 30 years. Maximum seed production occurs around 300 years old.
This tree can be found in dry upland forests, rocky woodlands, barrens, sandy soils of the Coastal plain, old fields, and fencerows.
Eastern red cedar is the most widely distributed tree-sized conifer in the Eastern United States. It is one of the first trees to grow in abandoned fields and pastures. They are typically temporary and replaced by more tolerant hardwoods and pines.
Bark is light reddish brown, thin, and shreds into strips.
Leaves are scalelike on mature shoots.
Female cones appear as blue-glaucous berries, and fruits are eaten by birds and other animals. They play a major role in seed dispersal.
Trees are classified as intolerant to very intolerant of shade but are adapted to dry sites.
Eastern red cedar is not technically a cedar tree, as it is in the Juniperus genus and not the cedar genus (Cedrus).
Wood is used for furniture, posts, and pencils, among other objects. Oil from the resin is used for ointments, soaps, and to flavor gin.
In fire-suppressed areas, Eastern red cedar can become a troublesome, dominant species that needs population control strategies.
Eastern red cedars have been favored as Christmas trees.
These trees are very common in a wide range of wet to dry forests and woodlands throughout. Most abundant along fencerows and in old field successional forests, maritime dune scrub, maritime woodlands and forests, and northern hardwood forests.
Bark is dark and can either be smooth or scaly. When scratched or peeled off, the bark emits and almond-like odor.
Leaves are lance-shaped to oblong and have small round teeth along the edges. They are dark green and shiny on the topside and slightly hairy underneath.
Black cherry differs from domestic cherries in flowering time. The flowers of black cherry appear late in leaf development versus before in domestic cherries. Black cherry flowers are white and pollinated by flies, beetles, and bees.
Seedlings and saplings grow rapidly but are intolerant of shade and require canopy openings to survive.
Fruits are dark red to black with a pit in the middle. Birds and mammals distribute seeds.
The leaves, twigs, and bark contain cyanide that is released during foliage wilting. If eaten, the wilted foliage can cause harm to domestic livestock.
This shrubby tree is found in well-drained floodplain forests, semi-dry to occasionally dry upland forests, wet flatwoods, and swamp hummocks.
Bark is thin and generally smooth with irregular fissures.
Trees grow 20 to 40 feet tall.
Leaves are obovate oblong to lanceolate and gradually narrow towards the tips.
Flowers are purple to brown and connecting stems are hairy. Pollination occurs by flies, sap beetles, or self-pollination.
Pawpaw fruits are classified as berries. They are large and pulpy, resembling mangos and having a reputation of tasting like bananas. They ripen from July to September.
The berries can be eaten raw or used in a variety of recipes. The pawpaw is gaining popularity as a native landscaping and fruit tree.
This tree can be found in old fields, fencerows, roadsides, swamp forests, depression ponds, dune woodlands and scrub, rocky woodlands, and the understory of mesic to dry forests.
Trunks are relatively smaller, and bark is deeply furrowed and cross-checked.
Leaves are alternately arranged and are egg-shaped with smooth edges.
Flowers are yellow to greenish yellow. They are very attractive to bees and are useful for honey production.
Fruits are green, hard, and astringent when unripe. They turn a deeper orange to red and become sweet when ripe, often after the first frost.
Optimum fruit-bearing age is 25 to 50 years old, but younger trees have been known to produce fruit. Seeds are spread by birds, mammals, and water.
Fruits can be dried and used in baking or fermented.
Common Shrub Species at Manassas
This shrub can be found in damp to wet soils in fields, clearings, ditches, roadsides, floodplain forests, swamps, and occasionally low mesic forests.
Leaves are compound and divided into 5-11 leaflets. Leaflets are long, narrow, and sharply ridged.
Flowers are white and fragrant and have a flat, clustered appearance similar to Queen Anne’s Lace.
Fruits are deep purple or black and grow in dense clusters, maturing in August through October.
Common Elderberry has a variety of uses, from an ingredient in jellies, wines, candies, teas, and syrups, to medicinal and insecticide purposes, to material for children’s toys.
This shrub can be found in mesic and dry-mesic upland forests, well-drained floodplain forests, seepage swamps, alluvial swamps, and tidal swamps.
Oblong or elliptic leaf shape, tapering at the base of the leaf. Leaves smell spicy when crushed.
Bright yellow flowers appear before the leaves in the spring and have a puffball-like appearance.
It produces red fruits in August and September that have a peppery taste and scent. These fruits are very popular among birds during fall migration.
Spicebush is a host plant for Spicebush Swallowtail adults and larvae and Palamedes Swallowtail larvae.
Human uses of spicebush include planting it in shade and butterfly gardens, using it in medicinal teas, and using it as a substitute for allspice during the Revolutionary War.
This perennial can be found in a variety of disturbed and natural habitats, and is most numerous in open, rich soil of disturbed areas.
Stems are non-woody and have a wine-red to purple color. Shrubs can grow up to be 9 feet tall!
Leaves are smooth and have no serrations along the edges. The largest leaves are at the bottom of the plant and get smaller going up the stem. Leaf stems are often reddish.
Flowers are white and emerge in clusters in midsummer.
Berries mature in clusters in the late summer. Clusters have 15-75 dark purplish-black berries. The berries are eaten by birds.
Pokeweed is poisonous to humans and livestock and is skin irritating.
This large shrub/small tree can be found in mesic to dry upland forests, boarders and clearings, old fields, and well-drained floodplains.
Leaves are wide and elliptic and can have a tapering or rounded base. They appear dark green above with a paler green underneath.
Flowers are a bright or creamy white or pink. Fruits are dark to bright red and grow in bunches.
Bark becomes scaly to finely blocky as trees mature.
These trees boast beautiful blooms, making them a very popular landscaping plant.
Dogwoods have exceptionally hard wood, and it has been used to make items such as spears, daggers, golf heads, cutting boards, and knitting needles.
This shrub can be found in a wide range of habitats and vegetation types, ranging from forested to open and wet to dry.
Leaves are oval shaped with serrations along the edges. The middle vein of the leaf can have a reddish-brown color.
Flowers are small and white, growing in flat-topped clusters similar in appearance to Queen Anne’s lace.
Fruits are blue-black with a white coating and mature in September-October. They grow on long red stalks.
Black Haw is widely used in landscaping because of its aesthetic and wildlife value. The berries are very popular with bird species and leaves turn a beautiful array of colors during the fall.
This shrub can be found in alluvial swamps, seepage swamps, bogs, ponds, and depression swamps, occasionally in mesic upland forests. It is related to American Holly (Ilex opaca) and similar in appearance.
Leaves are shiny dark green and have serrations along their edges. Leaves have a lighter lining along the edge that parallel the serrations.
Flowers are small, white and grow along the base of leaves.
Fruits are bright red to yellow and grow in bunches. They persist throughout the winter, making this plant an important food source for birds.
This plant is a host plant for several moth larvae including the Pawpaw Sphinx moth.
This small evergreen tree can be found in mesic to dry upland forests, well-drained floodplain forests, and swamp hummocks.
Leaves are rigid and have many spine-tipped teeth along their edges.
Fruits are bright red to orange and are irregularly grooved on the back. Birds feed on the berries after the first frost makes them palatable.
American holly is widely used in landscaping and provides natural windbreaks and protection for wildlife.
Holly is related to a common ancestor of ancient evergreens, and today there are around 400-500 species in the holly (Ilex) genus all over the world in various climates.
Superstitions surround holly plants – in Scotland, branches of holly are hung over doors to prevent evil influence. Romans believed holly protected from lighting strikes. It is also believed that witches avoid flying over holly.
